A dear lady in the church recently underwent hip surgery, so doing what I do, I of course volunteered to take a meal to her and her husband. This particular church lady I knew was health-conscious and didn’t shy away from more “crunchy” ingredients. I knew I could get away with something a little different for her.

Taking some inspiration from the Grilled Chicken and Quinoa Bowls from a few days prior, I seasoned and grilled some chicken breasts. For the seasoning, I made a homemade rub of a pinch each of: lemon peel, coconut sugar, herbes de Provence, kosher salt (I’ve tried various brands, but Morton is the best!), and fresh ground black peppercorns. I grilled the breasts over medium heat for approximately 3-5min each side. I allowed them to rest while I prepared the quinoa and then sliced them into thick strips against the grain.

I knew I wanted to do something with the delicious tricolor quinoa I had remaining in the bag also. I remembered a yummy, somewhat healthy Creamy Quinoa Primavera recipe from my Betty Crocker cookbook a few years back. It combines beautiful quinoa, cream cheese, fresh aromatic basil, and sautéed mixed vegetables. It is finished with tangy Romano cheese. It’s a perfect nutty, creamy, dreamy pasta-like bed for the grilled chicken. The great thing too is that quinoa is loaded with good protein (among other benefits).

For dessert, I went with something a little less than somewhat healthy… And in the same quinoa playbook. I made another batch of those Quinoa Blondies from the week prior. This time however, I used NuttZo Smooth Peanut Butter. I switched out the semi-sweet pieces for a mixture of white, milk, semi-sweet, and midnight pieces. I did however make a small mistake, which still ended up ok. I accidentally omitted the baking powder causing them to not rise, but they turned out like cookie bars so it wasn’t tragic in the end.

The couple was delighted to receive the meal and thoroughly enjoyed it. What are some of your favorite vegetable to mix with cooked rice/pasta/grains?